


Roses And Thornes

by friendofours



Category: Lunar Chronicles - Marissa Meyer
Genre: Memory Loss, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-19
Updated: 2021-03-03
Packaged: 2021-03-15 16:22:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 7,740
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29561841
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/friendofours/pseuds/friendofours
Summary: (I wrote this for Thorne's birthday) :)After the war, things are starting to settle down a bit in the Eastern Commonwealth, but not for Emperor Kaito. Kai is really in need of a break, and who's ready to answer the call? None other than the incredibly charming, reckless, and shockingly lucky Carswell Thorne.First Released: May 21, 2020
Relationships: Jacin Clay/Winter Hayle-Blackburn, Kai/Carswell Thorne, Scarlet Benoit/Wolf | Ze'ev Kesley





	1. The Invitation

Iko placed her hands on her hips and huffed indignantly. “This place is a mess.”

She was referring to Kaito’s bedroom, and Kaito himself was standing behind her with his hands in his pockets, looking sheepishly at his feet. 

It was, in the eyes of anyone other than Kai, a mess. Robes, files, books, and a wide variety of other things were strewn everywhere, making the whole place look like some business-related jungle. 

“I was just… working, and… I wanted to make things more comfortable.” 

Iko turned, crossed her arms, and gave him what she hoped was a demeaning look. By the way his face flushed, it appeared to work. 

“I think we need to clear up the definition of “comfortable”, because sweaty old robes draped off the bed frame are the  _ opposite _ of comforting.”

Kai opened his mouth to defend himself, then stopped and squinted angrily at her. “Where’d you learn to talk like that?” He said suspiciously. “You sound like my mother.”

Iko shrugged. “All I’ll say is…” she took a deep breath, “Cinder’s been showing me some tricks.”

Then she crossed the room and began folding a wrinkled shirt that had been lying on the bed, while Kai stood uselessly behind her. 

Suddenly, a head appeared in the doorway. It was grinning emphatically, and, regrettably, it belonged to a certain Carswell Thorne. 

“Guys!” Thorne exclaimed. “Guess what!”

Kai ran a hand through his hair. “What now?”

Thorne practically skipped over to Kai and thrust out a small, already opened blue envelope. “This, I believe, is for you, your Imperialness.”

Kai took it and examined it. It was blank; no address, nothing. “Why would anyone send hard-copy  _ letters _ anymore? They could have just linked to my port--”

“Who cares?!” Thorne burst impatiently. “Maybe they thought it would be more… trad.”

Kai raised an eyebrow. “You think so?”

Thorne nodded so fast his head might have come loose. 

“Well, before you think anything else, I’ll clear up one request: Never open my mail for me.”

Thorne threw up his hands. “Okay! Fine! Sure! Absolutely! Never again!  _ Just read it!! _ ”

Kai slowly pulled out the letter and unfolded it. Iko suddenly appeared over his shoulder, making him jump. “Oooh, an invitation. Read it out loud.”

Kai did. “His Imperial Majesty, Emperor Kaito of the Eastern Commonwealth,” he began, wrinkling his nose at the long title. “It is with great honour that we invite you, along with four close friends of your choice, to this year’s grand opening of “Aces and Spades Nightclub. This club features royalty befitting quality seating, drinks, the latest virtual reality hover games, exemplary service, and predetermined cancellation/ rebooking of all other appointments, meetings, or business related work. We invite you to attend tomorrow, beginning at 9:30 pm--”

Kai stopped there. He looked seriously up at Thorne. “You don’t think I’m actually considering any of this, do you?”

Thorne’s eyes widened, then he winced, looking hurt. “What? Why not? It’s a party! And you’d invite me, wouldn’t you?”

Kai shoved the unfinished letter in his pocket. “I don’t do parties. I’m an Emperor, I have work to do,” He moved to his desk and began brushing all the junk off of it, feeling foolish for even reading the invitation. 

Thorne rushed forward and grabbed his shoulder. “C’mon, Kai, it’s just this once! Take a  _ break _ , you know you need it. You’ve needed a break since the War started, and you never got one, in all these months--”

“I’m  _ not _ going to a nightclub to get drunk or stoned or whatever else and play VR games like a thrill-seeking twenty year old.” said Kai. 

Thorne leaned against the wall, his eyebrows furrowed with confusion. “You’re  _ not _ a thrill-seeking twenty year old?”

“No! Of course not! I’m the  _ Emperor _ !” Kai exclaimed. Then he brushed past Thorne and an anxious-looking Iko, and stormed off through the castle. 

Still in his room, Thorne sank into a chair, looking truly crestfallen. “Aw, man. I could really use a good drink nowadays.” 

All Iko said was “Hmph.” She was getting good at hmphing. “I can’t agree with you on that, but you are right about one thing.” She gazed down the hallway, where her keen eyes just made out the hem’s of Kai’s shirt before he disappeared around a corner. “He  _ really _ could use a break.”


	2. Pizza

Cinder and Liam Kinney were in the kitchen, scrolling through dinner recipes on Cinder’s port.

“Lasagna?” She suggested.

“No. Too time consuming.” said Liam. 

“Stir Fry?”

“We don’t have the sauces.”

“Pork roast?”

“I don’t eat pigs.”

“Casserole?”

Kinney shuddered dramatically. “ _ Please _ , no. Never say the word casserole, I’ll have nightmares.”

Cinder arched an eyebrow. “Your parents were health nuts, then?”

“No, my aunt.” He shuddered again, rubbing his forearms. “Please, suggest something else.”

“Erm…” Cinder scrolled through, squinting at the portscreen. “Mac and Cheese?”

“Yeah. Sure. Sounds good.” Kinney said hurriedly. 

“You know, we could just go out for supper,” said Scarlet. She was sitting on the counter, staring distractedly at her port. “All your talk of food is making me hungry, and anything we try to make will end up taking forever anyways. Let’s just go order pizza or something.”

Cinder whirled around. “Spades, Scar, you’re a genius!”

“According to who?” Kinney inquired. “We’ve been eating fast food for weeks, it’s not like--”

“Shut up.” Cinder recommended, closing her port and getting to her feet. “Scar, can you call a pizza place? I’ll go ask people what kind they want.”

Scarlet nodded and slid off the countertop, whilst Liam crossed his arms and leaned against a wall broodily, and Cinder disappeared down the hall. 

She stopped first at Ze’ev’s room. He opened the door wearing jeans and a sweatshirt, with his spiky hair looking messier than usual. “He-hello?” He said, stifling an enormous yawn. 

“Oh, Wolf, did you stay up late again?” Cinder said with a sigh. 

Ze’ev lowered his gaze sheepishly. “I’m sorry. There was a full moon last night, I… I like full moons, they’re beautiful.”

“Well that’s lovely.” said Cinder. “Um, what kind of pizza do you like?”

“Oh.” Ze’ev scratched his head. “I dunno. Is there one with tomatoes?”

Cinder just managed to withhold another huge sigh. “Yes, yes, they all have tomato sauce on them.”

“Well then,” Ze’ev thought hard for a moment. Then he looked up seriously. “I’d like one with tomato sauce.”

At Cinder’s look, he added “Please. And thank you.”

Next, Cinder visited Cress’s room. Cress, as it turned out, was hanging upside down from the edge of her bed, her eyes glued to her portscreen. 

“Hya, Cress,” said Cinder. 

Cress glanced up at her. “Oh, hi. I was just reprogramming this game; I didn’t like the control options.”

Cinder smiled a little. “Of course you were. Listen, we’re going to order pizza again, any preferences?”

Cress frowned. “No, not really. Oh, but nothing with pepperoni. It’s too spicy.”

The next room Cinder visited was Jacin and Winter’s, and unfortunately, she forgot to knock. Opening the door and peeking inside was something she instantly regretted. 

Jacin and Winter were on the bed, practically on top of eachother, and glued at the lips. 

“Um…. guys…. “She said softly, her face burning red. They pulled apart and glanced at her simultaneously, flushed and breathless. 

“Oh,” said Winter. She smiled kindly. “Cinder. I had a dream you had your fingers stolen. Of course, it was only a dream, but… it’s nice to see you’ve had them all returned.”

Cinder had gotten used to comments like these. She returned the smile, then looked back at Jacin, who was trying to move away from Winter and fix his messy hair as fast as he could. “Any pizza preferences?” she asked tensely.

“Pizza?” said Jacin. “I-- I was planning on-- no sure, pizza. Um. I don’t care, Winter?”

Winter gazed thoughtfully at the ceiling. “I’ve always wondered about human pizza. I’m curious to try… oh, what’s it called… Mediterranean.”

“Okay, Meditarranean it is.” Cinder made a note in her mental preface, then got out of there and shut the door as fast as she could, silently praying Jacin would find the sense to put some pants on, and advise Winter to do the same.

After that, she found Kai’s bedroom. Her heart raced a little as she approached his door, even though she’d done so at least a thousand times now. She knocked three times, and waited, bouncing on the balls of her feet. 

But instead of Kai, it was Thorne who opened the door. “What.” 

Cinder stared at him a second, confused. He’d been running around estatically earlier this morning-- though she hadn’t figured out why -- and now he looked in a terrible mood. 

“I… I wondered if you have any favourite kind of pizza.” she said hesitantly. 

Thorne glared at her for a moment, crossing his arms over his chest. “I’m not hungry.” he said, then practically pushed her over as he brushed past and stormed off toward his own room. 

Cinder had just gathered together her thoughts on this behaviour and were about to turn around and present them clearly, when Iko tapped on her shoulder. 

“Don’t mind him, he’s had a letdowm.” she said with a sigh. 

Cinder huffed and put her hands on her hips. "Has he? Interesting." She turned back to Iko. "Where's Kai?"

"I can't say I know," Iko said, looking somewhat disappointed in herself. "After yelling at Thorne he just stormed off that way," She pointed down a hall that led to the entrance of the castle. "I suspect he's just gone for a walk or something."

Sighing, Cinder thanked Iko and pulled on a thin sweater, then stepped out of the Rampion and looked around at the windy autumn landscape of the Eastern Commonwealth. She descended the huge set of stairs on which she had fallen and lost her foot all those many months ago, and set out along the now-familiar garden path that Kai always led her down to see the sunset. 

She found him sitting on the edge of a stone fountain, staring into the distance with a lost expression on his face. In fact, he didn't notice Cinder's presence until she sat down beside him and took his hand, making him jump and swivel around to look at her. 

"Hey," she said quietly. 

Kai appeared to relax somewhat, and he flashed a smile. "You found me."

"Like  _ that's _ an accomplishment." Cinder laughed, but Kai didn't join her. He'd gone back to staring intently at the ground. 

"What's bothering you?" she ventured to ask. He jumped again. 

"Nothing! I'm fine, just... tired." he awkwardly fiddled with the tight collar of his shirt. 

Slightly worried and confused, Cinder decided it was best just to get to the point.  _ Pizza toppings _ . That's why she was here. 

"So, um, for supper this evening--"

"Look Cinder, I have to tell you something." Kai suddenly interrupted. He looked up at her, and there was something pained in his beautiful dark eyes. Cinder faltered and felt her heartbeat speed up, uncertainty clawing up her throat. "What? What is it?"

Without warning, Kai got to his feet, his hands balling into fists. His face was flushed, and his breathing fast. 

Cinder leapt up and tried to take his hands in hers, but he pulled away, hugging himself. "No, I can't, I can't, I just --" he mumbled, scrunching up his face. 

"You can't  _ what _ ?" Cinder exclaimed. "What's wrong?" 

Kai said nothing, he just looked at her. His eyes were brimming with tears now, and Cinder wished with all her heart that he would just  _ tell her _ what the aces was going on. Finally, he managed to say "I'm so sorry, Cinder." 

Then he turned away from her and ran back toward the castle, leaving Cinder standing alone in the beautiful golden, red, and brown garden, the wind sending her hair dancing in the wind and causing the fallen leaves to take to the sky and swirl toward the sun as it slowly approached the horizon. 


	3. It's Definetly France

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I realized while I was going to publish chapter 4 that it was basically two paragraphs long so instead I just added it to the end of this chapter instead of making a seperate update - I hope that's not confusing

Carswell Thorne lay on his back on top of his unmade bed, staring at the ceiling. The right half of his brain was thinking about Kai, and the left half was trying to figure out how to get him out of his stinking office and into a nightclub. Both things required a level of concentration, but only one of them was exhausting. 

Thorne rolled over onto one side and accidentally fell off the bed, then cursed and scrambled to his feet, massaging the side of his face. He glanced up and caught his reflection in the mirror that hung by his bedside table. 

He looked as handsome as always, aside from the scowl. He’d half to fix that at some point, but for now it would have to do. 

Daring to flash his teeth and wink for a split second, he satisfied himself with straightening his shirt and returning to the kitchen, where Scarlet and Kinney were engaged in a heated argument about where the guy who’d invented champagne was from. 

“He’s _French_ , you nitwit!” scowled Scar advancing on Liam, who was shaking his head. 

“Honestly Ms. Benoit, think about it,” he said reasonably, though he was evidently irritated. “He’s _got_ to be Italian. Just look at the name! _Dom Perignon_. Sounds pretty Italian to me!”

“That’s just because everything from Europe sounds the same to you!” fumed Scarlet. 

“Ladies, cool your jets,” Thorne thrust himself between them, though their glaring faces were hardly a foot apart, and tried to put on his most calming smile. “I’m sure wherever this dude was born, he’d be happy to know that we can agree on one thing: Champagne is worth making a peace over.”

Kinney and Scar just shot a last glare at each other and turned away, crossing their arms. Thorne sighed and noticed for the first time that Cress was sitting at the kitchen table, watching him in an amused way. He slid into a chair beside her. 

“How’d it go with reprograming “Abomination Nation”?” he asked, trying to sound blithe. 

Cress’s face flushed bright red. “Oh, well, I just thought it would make more sense if the snowballs didn’t have to melt so often when you shoot them.”

"Something about the science of heat and velocity?" Thorne inquired vaguely. 

"Yeah, well this is a port game, not a science experiment." Cress smirked, sliding her port into a pocket, before getting to her feet (which generally didn't make her much taller). "I'm going to find Cinder and see if she needs help with the pizza order. It's been a while now, and people are getting hangry." she nodded in the direction of the other two, then skipped out of the room, her short hair waving. 

After a moment, Thorne turned back to the others. "Well? any last comments?"

They each mumbled something, and took off toward their separate rooms. 

_Finally, some peace and quiet to make a solid plan_ , Thorne thought, and blissfully pulled out a piece of paper and a dull pencil and began diagramming some of the ideas that had been floating around his head. 

"I never knew you were an artist." Kai's voice said, shockingly close to his ear. 

"Aces!" Thorne practically fell out of his chair, and his piece of paper went flying onto the floor. Kai caught his chair and shoved him back upright, causing him to slam his face into the table. 

"Sorry! Sorry, I--" Kai stammered, grabbing his shoulder. Thorne froze at the touch, and felt his ears grow hot. He shook off Kai's hand. 

"Don't sneak up on me like that," Thorne muttered. 

Kai suddenly looked extremely uncomfortable, and he ran a hand through his dark hair. "I didn't mean to _scare_ you, I thought fleet captains were supposed to have quick reflexes." he mumbled, disgruntled.

Stung, Thorne pulled out a new piece of paper and began scribbling furiously across it. "And how am I ever going to become a real captain if I don't have a fleet?"

After that there was silence. Thorne gave up on his diagram, not really sure what the purpose of it was anymore, crumpled it up, and threw it at the back of Kai's head. 

"Hey! What was that for?" Kai cried, his hand flying up to his hair once again.

"Kai, please," Thorne hated pleading with a passion, but he'd ruled it out as his only option. "I... I want you to come with me. To the nightclub. Please."

There was a pause. Kai just stared at him, his mouth slightly open. Then his ears flared bright pink. "Oh -- I -- you -- _me_?" 

"C'mon your Majesty, speak English." said Thorne. Then he flashed a timid smile, and the redness in Kai's ears spread onto his cheeks. He slowly lowered his hand. 

"I guess... Fine. I'll go with you. To a nightclub." Kai looked horrified at his own words, but he didn't take them back. 

Thorne beamed. For real this time. 

\-------

{Kai's POV}

Kai could hardly believe it. He was going to a nightclub. Stars above, how had Carswell tricked him into this?

He took a breath and collapsed onto his bed, letting a cool breeze flutter through his hair from the open window. He could clearly picture Thorne’s face, so practiced in the perfect smile. It was a talent to be envied of on his part, as fake smiles were something you had to have a large stock of in order to rule a commonwealth. Still, when Thorne wasn’t flirting, when his grin was genuine and too big for his face, that was when… 

Suddenly feeling very hot, Kai threw off his fancy overcoat and tossed it aside. This new habit of untidyness would be a problem sooner or later, when Torin came back from vacation. But for now, he sort of enjoyed being carefree and not having to worry about how smooth his hair was all the time. 

If only Thorne were less beautiful -- because there was no more denying it, that was something he’d given up -- he wouldn’t have had to hurt Cinder. But she was strong, she’d survive without him… wouldn’t she?

Kai sat up, feeling fidgety and uncomfortable in his own skin. He wasnt’t evil, was he? It wasn’t a  _ bad _ thing to be bisexual. But it was hard to tell the truth; to hurt people. 

Suddenly the door burst open, and Carswell bounded in. Kai leapt to his feet, his heart speeding up. Thorne had changed into black slacks and a shiny leather jacket that  _ smelled _ of thievery, but that didn’t stop Kai’s stomach from fluttering. 

“Y-you could at least knock,” he mumbled, his voice surprisingly small.  _ Stars,  _ he was handsome.

Thorne smirked at him. “If his Royal Highness doesn’t wish me to accidentally see his rock-hard abs, so be it.”

Kai could feel his neck turning pink now, and he scowled. “You just don’t know how to shut up, do you.”

Thorne laughed. Actually laughed. Kai looked up at him, and suddenly something about Carswell’s straight-backed posture gave him the impression that he felt just as awkward as Kai felt. 

“Shall we?” Thorne gave an exaggerated bow and gestured toward the door. 

“Rise, peasant.” the words were out of Kai’s mouth before he realised what they were, and what followed was an awkward silence in which they stared at each other for a solid three seconds, before bursting into roaring laughter. 

“Can you two keep it down? It’s getting late!” Liam Kinney’s voice called from one of the other rooms, reducing Kai and Thorne to hushed chuckles. Then Thorne took Kai’s hand -- which jolted him all the way down to his toes -- and they both made their way down the hall and out onto the front steps of the castle, where the last few rays of the sun could be seen reflecting off the buildings of New Beijing.


	4. Under The Stars

The moment they stepped through the heavy double doors of Aces and Spades, Thorne's ears were bombarded by a wave of deafening dance music. The bass made his heart thump louder, and his fingers tingled with each vibration. 

Beside him, Kai flinched. “Jesus, someone turn that down!” He yelled, but it was so loud his voice was hardly audible. 

Thorne took his hand and smiled. “C’mon, it’s part of the fun,” he bellowed back. Kai looked uncertain, but the next moment Thorne was dragging him by the wrist into the center of a tightly-packed swarm of sweaty, dancing people. 

Thorne saw flashes of metal in the crowd, and a thought struck him. He turned back to Kai. “Hey, check it out! There are cyborgs here!”

Kai’s eyebrows rose, and his look of concern quickly formed into one of pride. He leaned in to speak into Thorne’s ear, and Thorne felt his stomach flutter. “I guess this place can’t be  _ that _ bad…” 

As if it were physically possible for their conversation to be overheard, a girl who appeared to be about the same age as Kai came toward them, and bowed to Kai, who suddenly looked thoughrowly uncomfortable. 

“Welcome, your Imperial Majesty,” She said. Her hair was pink and spiky, and her short skirt revealed a large slab of metal that replaced part of her thigh. Her skin was dark enough to appear bluish in the coloured lights of the dancefloor. “We are honoured that you have chosen to join us for tonight’s enjoyment.” she smiled, revealing several silver teeth. 

Kai returned the smile, though it was slightly forced. “Your establishment is…” Thorne saw him hesitate for a fraction of a second, “ impressive. I am grateful for your kind invitation.”

The girl fluttered her eyelashes, flattered, and melted back into the hive of moving bodies. 

Kai’s shoulders sagged and he said into Thorne’s ear “I was hoping this wouldn’t happen. Why can’t I go to a party and expect people to treat me like a normal person?”

Thorne took Kai’s arms in his hands and looked him in the face, grinning. “If you’d like, your Imperial Majesty, I can treat you like a normal person,” Then he winked, and whisked Kai into the throng. 

\-----

After several drinks, Thorne was beginning to feel truly elated. Even Kai seemed to be having a good time, laughing at his bad jokes and showing off his not-half-bad dance moves. But as the evening drew on, things began to get hazy. Thorne was about to accept yet another round of shots, when he realised Kai was longer sitting beside him. He looked dogedly around, scanning the crowd. 

“Hey, have you seen Kai?” he asked the lady at the bar. “The Emporer,” he added at her confused look. 

“Oh,” she simpered, “of course. I saw His Imperial Majesty leave for the men’s room a few minutes ago. I’m sure he’ll be back soon.” 

Thorne frowned. Why hadn’t Kai told him where he was going? Then again, maybe he had, while Thorne was distracted. 

A few more minutes passed, and Thorne found himself getting nervous. He got up from the bar, shaking his head even as he did so.  _ He’s fine, _ he thought irritably.  _ Relax Thorne, he’s fine _ . 

But he didn’t believe himself. Glancing around awkwardly, he made his way through the crowd toward the back of the club, where the bathrooms were. He opened the door to the men’s room and slipped in, saying softly. “... Kai? You in here?”

His query was met with silence. After a quick glance under each of the stalls, he deduced that the place was deserted. Nerves pricked, he left the washroom and looked down the hallway in which he now stood. Down at the end of it, a door stood with a sigh reading “Emergency Exit”. Deciding it was his best option, Thorne ran down the hall and tried the handle. It was unlocked. 

Outside, the sun had long set. A few lamps illuminated a dirt path that led down a small hill to a stack of storage crates. On top of one of the crates, he could see the silhouette of Kai sitting and staring up at the sky. 

Feeling a wave of relief, Thorne rushed down the path and almost crashed into Kai. "Spades Kai, don't abandon me like that!" He shouted. "You scared me!"

Kai laughed, then grinned guiltily. "I tried to tell you but you were too busy blabbing to the bartender about how to cheat at cards."

Thorne sat down beside him and crossed his arms over his chest. "Ugh, fine. It's just... well, I thought you were having a good time, I mean..." He glared at the ground. "I did this for you, y'know..." he said quietly.

Kai sighed. After a moment he laid his hand on Thorne's arm. "Hey, I'm sorry. I'm just not a fan of parties like this. I never have been. I know you wanted me to come try it out, but... it just isn't for me."

"Great." Thorne spat. "I try  _ so hard _ to make you like me and I  _ still _ mess it up. I'm such an idiot." His breath caught in his throat, and he turned away from Kai. 

Then, all of a sudden, Kai took Thorne's jaw in his soft, firm hand, and kissed him. Thorne felt his whole body go rigid, but next second a surging tide of warmth cascaded over him and made his muscles melt. The stars above them blurred together into a swirling sea of light and nothingness, and all that was left in the world was him and Kai. 

After a moment they broke apart, and Thorne stared blissfully into Kai's copper-brown eyes, which shone brightly in the moonlight. Then his gaze fell to Kai's lips, which were full and damp, and he half-consciously wrapped his arms around Kai's waist, pulling him closer until their chests were pressed together, to steadily beating hearts united. 

Kai smiled and whispered, "Carswell, you are everything I ever wanted and more." 

Then Kai's lips were on his, and Thorne felt Kai's tongue enter his mouth. He knew then, with certainty, that there was no turning back now. Kaito was, and would always be, his prince. 


	5. Stolen

As they walked slowly back home from a long night spent under the stars, Kai began to notice that Thorne, now red-faced and too drunk to walk in a straight line, seemed to be getting less and less sober as time progressed. Concerned, he took Thorne’s arm in his. “We’ll be home soon. Are you doing okay?” he asked hesitantly. 

“Oh, yeah, yeah I’m fine, I just--” Thorne cut off mid-sentence and stumbled sideways into the brick wall of the building, grunting. He grimaced. “I don’t feel so good, Kai…” he groaned thickly, and pressed a hand to his stomach. 

Worried, Kai reached to take Thorne’s shoulders, but Thorne pushed him away and cursed, holding his head in one head. “What’s… happeningnumee… “he slurred. Then his eyes rolled up into his head and he fell over, crashing into a nearby flower pot and collapsing limply to the ground. 

“Carswell!” Kai screamed, rushing forward. But before he could take another step, a huge, hairy hand closed around his throat and pulled him backward. Kai gasped and thrashed at whoever was holding him, but within a moment the hand had let go of his neck and he felt his hands being tied behind him. 

“Let me go!” Kai screamed. Then he remembered: he was the Emporer. “I command you to--”

The unidentified hairy hand shoved a gag into his mouth, silencing him. It was too dark for Kai to see who was holding him, but whoever it was, he heard them retreat, and quickly realized he’d been tied to a tree. Enraged, terrified, and humiliated, Kai watched as a hulking figure came out of the shadows before him and picked up Thorn’es slack body in one hand. 

The mutant sneered, showing sharp, pointed teeth, and Kai felt his heart sink down into the concrete beneath him. 

“Good evening, Kaito,” the mutant snarled. He was taller than Wolf by at least a foot, and looked far more capable of disembowling anyone who got on his bad side. He effortlessly slung Thorne over his shoulder, and Kai cringed as he heard Thorne’s head smack against the mutant’s back. 

The mutant barked something Kai didn’t understand to his comrade, and Kai’s gag was removed rather forcefully from his mouth. Kai spat at the mutant’s feet, mainly trying to get the hair out of his mouth. 

The towering mutant growled at him. “I thought they would teach an Emperor more respect.”

Kai met the mutant’s tiny yellow eyes. “I don’t see why I should feel obliged to show any respect to you, sir. I believe it is _you_ who ought to be respectful.” 

“And yet you call me  _ sir _ ,” the mutant chuckled. “I can smell the fear drifting off you, Kai. You’re quite potent, I will say.”

Kai glared at him with renewed lividity. “You will adress me as your superior.” He hated saying it, hated using his status to his advantage, even while he had done nothing to earn the respect that everything was always spewing over him. But this situation called for drastic measures. “What is your name?”

“ I am Vilk Orzeni. I am one of the last survivors of the war who rebels against you and your filthy Commonwealth. I honour no one but the true heir to the throne of Luna, and now there is no more throne. Let the idiots reign, but I and my survivors will forever be vigilant.” He crossed his arms over his chest in some kind of salute, and Kai heard the one behind him do the same. 

_ Okay then, _ Kai thought,  _ he’s obviously crazy. But he has Thorne. _ He cleared his throat and forced himself to look back up at Orzeni’s distorted face. “Very well then. You may continue to serve a ghost, and I will not stop you. All I ask is that you return that man to me, and leave all my citizens alone.”

There was a pause. Then Orzeni burst out into roaring laughter. Kai struggled against his bindings, but it only resulted in the ropes diggin deeper into his wrists. His hands ached. 

Orzeni appeared to recover, and he removed Thorne from his shoulder, dangling him by the collar of his leather jacket. “You want  _ this _ cheater back? Fine, you can have him, but he won’t do you much good,” he laughed again, his voice booming like a wolf’s bark. “He’s been poisoned, see.”

Kai suddenly felt faint.  _ Poisoned? _ “What! No!” He cried, tears stinging his eyes. “You can’t--”

“Oh don’t start crying, little Emporer,” Orzeni sneered. “He’s not  _ dead _ . But when he wakes up, he’ll have had his memory wiped. Who knows…” he drifted off gleefully. “He might not even remember who you are.”

Kai’s legs were shaking, and he could hardly keep himself upright. Panic blurred his thoughts. “Why -- why are you doing this?” He cried. 

“Here, take a look at this,” Orzeni held Thorne by the flesh of his neck and peeled off the leather jacket he’d been wearing, throwing it to Kai’s feet. Kai stared down at it, and saw the tag on the collar. He was immediately able to discern two things about the jacket: a) Thorne had not bought it, and b) Whoever it belonged to, they were very rich, and were probably willing to pay quite a bit to get it back. 

“Your boyfriend is a liar and a cheat,” Orzeni snarled. “You’re a fool to even want a thief like him around you and your precious royal possessions. Don’t tell me he hasn’t stolen anything from you before.”

Kai immidiately remembered the Rampion, but he shoved the thought out of his mind. He didn’t care what Thorne had done. He was still a good person on the inside, and besides, Kai was falling for him so hard the gravity between them must be magnified. Kai couldn’t change the past. 

Kai glared up at Orzeni. He’d called Thorne Kai’s  _ boyfriend _ . “Alright then. I cannot stop you. Take him to the prisons.” He looked down at the ground, surrendering himself, and suddenly truly comprehend his helplessness. Cinder was not going to show up and save the day this time. “You will get what you came for. And take your stupid jacket.” He kicked the jacket back toward Orzeni, who looked truly shocked at Kai’s response. 

Orzeni cleared his throat, gathering himself together. “Goodnight then, Kaito. I’m sure your friends will want to hear all about what came of this fugitive,” He threw Thorne back over his shoulder. “And your cooperation with the Order of Blackburn.”

Then he turned and disappeared into the night. Kai’s wrists were untied, and he fell onto his knees, hanging his head in shame. He decided without a doubt that he was officially the worst boyfriend on the planet and the moon combined. 


	6. From The Beginning

Thorne awoke groggily with his cheek pressed against a cold, hard cement floor. After a moment, he rolled unto his back and groaned, shading his eyes from the artificial light shining down on him from behind some kind of grated window. His muscles ached, and his whole body felt sore. 

Blinking rapidly, he took in his surroundings. To his left, a grey concrete wall. To his right, another grey concrete wall. Behind him… well, safe to say he was in a very plain, simple holding cell. Not that he knew what a holding cell was. 

Inside the cell was a stiff cot and a toilet. Thorne was sitting on the ground in the center of the floor, the light of a small opening near the ceiling shining down into his eyes. 

He got stiffly to his feet and moved toward the door, gripping the bars and peering down the hallway. There were more doors like his placed evenly down the walls, but it appeared that the rest of them were empty. Throne’s brows furrowed as something blurry appeared at the back of his mind. Something about these bars and walls was… familiar. 

He rubbed his forehead, which was beginning to pound. His whole brain felt fuzzy; it was hard to focus on any particular thought. 

Deciding he must just be tired, he fell onto the cot, and was shocked to find that it was nothing more than a slab of wood covered in a loosely stitched gery blanket. Cursing and rubbing his tailbone, he moved over the very far corner of the cell and slid down the wall, pulling his knees up to his chest. He then rested his head on his knees, and tried to remember how he’d gotten here. 

\-----

Someone was shouting. 

Thorne looked up. He could hear the voice of some young man, and someone else who sounded old and irritated, but the walls were too thick for him to hear what they were yelling about. He suddenly heard a crash, and the thundering sound of someone running. The footsteps grew closer, and he pulled himself further into the corner, hoping not to be seen. After a moment the running stopped, and was replaced with panting. “Carswell!” The person shouted, his voice echoing off the empty cells. “Thorne, where are you?” 

_ Thorne. Carwell Thorne. That’s my name! _ Thorne suddenly thought excitedly. Then a young man appeared outside the gate to his cell. 

The person had jet-black hair that hung over his eyes, and his clothes looked like they had at some point been formal, though they were now smeared with dirt and his shirt collar was undone, a red tie lying over his shoulders. His face was flushed, but his eyes were gleaming and alive. He wouldv’e actually been quite cute, if it weren’t for the grey bags under his eyes. 

It was then that a thought dawned on him:  _ I’m gay _ . “Huh,” he said aloud. 

“What?” The other guy asked, looking apprehensive. 

“Nothing,” Thorne muttered, crossing his arms and looking away. The dude with black hair got down on his knees and gripped the bars of Thorne’s cell, as if  _ he _ were the one locked up. After a moment, he said in a soft, scared voice, “Do you… do you know who I am?”

“No, why should I?” Thorne snapped, then immidiately regretted it. The other guy’s shoulders began to tremble, and he lowered his head, as wet spots appeared on the cement beneath him. 

Feeling a wave of guilt, Thorne got up and crawled over to the bars, kneeling before the weeping young man. He placed his fingers carefully on the other man’s hands, and tried to sound comforting. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean…” 

“No, it’s not your fault.” the young man said, his voice cracked. He looked up at Thorne, and a weak smile spread on his tear-soaked face. “It’s just… well, you and I…” He couldn’t finish. 

Suddenly Thorne gasped. “Wait. You were my boyfriend?” His memory was still fuzzy, but this fact seemed to reveal itself to him, and he beamed and laughed aloud. “Man, I had some  _ good _ taste.”

However, rather than cheer up this new acquaintance of his, Thorne’s remark only seemed to make the boy cry harder. 

“Hey, listen,” Thorne said gently, stroking the young man’s fingers with his. “Look at me.”

The black-haired guy lifted his head and met Thorn’es eyes. “Okay,” he croaked. 

“Alright, now you tell me what your name is, and maybe I’ll remember more.” said Thorne. 

Sniffing loudly the other man cleared his throat and sat up straighter, taking a deep breath. “I’m… I’m Kai.”

_ Kai. _ Thorne closed his eyes, trying to remember; trying to clear the fog that had moved in over his past.  _ Kai. Kai, my boyfriend. This guy in front of me. My boyfriend. Kai, Kai, Kai, Kai _ …

Suddenly a violent pain flashed white-hot through Thorn’es brain. He gasped and pressed his hands against his skull as the world flashed bright white, searing. 

He opened his eyes. He was back on the floor, but this time the guy with black hair -- Kai -- was staring down at him, looking petrified. “Are you okay?” He asked, his voice hardly more than a squeak. 

Thorne heaved himself back into a sitting position; his limbs felt like lead. “I… I can’t do it. I can’t remember. All I remember is waking up in this cell.” 

“But you have to at least  _ try _ ,” Kai pleaded desperately. 

“I  _ did _ try, and it nearly killed me.” said Thorne, frustrated. He rubbed his forehead again, trying to ease the ache that the flash had left behind. “Maybe… maybe if you just tell me,”

“Look, I don’t have much time.” Kai was wringing his hands, looking around nervously. “I might’ve… knocked out the guard, but he should be back any minute --”

“Alright, well, until he comes back, you can tell me how I ended up here in the first place.” said Thorne. 

Kai sighed. “Fine.” He then proceeded to explain as fast as he could how they’d been walking back from a nightclub (Thorne didn’t know what that was, but he didn’t ask, not wanting to interrupt), and how he (Thorne) had been poisoned and collapsed, and then some wolf-human things appeared and said that Thorne had stolen a super expensive leather jacket and they wanted to turn him in to make a profit. 

“Wait,” Thorne interrupted, no longer able to withhold the question. “I  _ stole _ a leather jacket?”

“Yes, you did,” Kai said impatiently. “You’re… well,” he frowned. “You’re a bit of a thief, actually. You, um, you cheat sometimes.” 

“Jee,” Thorne said, scratching his head. “Why would I want to do that?”

It dawned on Thorne that having his memory whipped was maybe not such a bad thing, and Kai seemed to be thinking along the same lines, because he then quickly added, “Oh, and your always flirting with girls, which is super annoying and nobody actually likes it, and you’ve got a terrible reputation all over the place because you’re always cheating people, and -- Oh!” Kai’s eyes widened suddenly, and he grinned. “And you  _ love _ airships. You actually stole one, an old Rampion.”

Thorne gasped.  _ The Rampion. _ He suddenly had the vivid image of a shining silver ship. “I… I remember,” he said slowly.

“You do?” Kai grinned and laughed. He was about to say something else, when the shuffling sound of footprints made it’s way to their ears. 

Thorne straightened. “Go. You have to go. I’ll… I’ll find a way out of this,” He smiled weakly. 

Kai got to his feet, glanced around, then suddenly reached into a back pocket and pulled out a small, slightly squashed bouquet of roses. He thrust them quickly through the bars. “Here. I was planning on giving them to you last night, but, well. Anyways.” 

Confused, Thorne took the flowers. ‘Uh, thanks, I guess,” He stared down at the red blooms, and felt an inexplicable warmth spreading through him. 

When he looked up again, Kai was gone. 


	7. Picked

Carswell's Thorne's ambitions may once have been grand schemes, twisted mystery plots, or dramatic crossroads of destiny, but now, he had only two goals in life: to get the hell out of here, and get his memory back. 

Achieving these ultimate objectives was, however, proving to be more difficult than he had imagined. 

His first attempt was to be friendly to the guards. Once, when a young, heavily armed girl that looked no older than fifteen came with a tray of food, he tried to put on his most charming smile and talk to her, but this only resulted in having his clam chowder thrown into his face rather than handed to him. 

Next, he tried to scare them into releasing him by pretending to go insane. He was apparently quite convincing in his acting abilities, he discovered by the looks of pity, fear, and disgust that he received as he ravaged around, yelling in gibberish. Nevertheless, his talent was rewarded only with a shot of tranquilliser that sent him into a slumber haunted with twisted dreams that he couldn't get out of his head when he finally awoke on the cold floor, aching, and missing a warmth of company he couldn't remember, but needed desperately all the same. 

In terms of restoring his memory, he’d had no success so far. Every time he managed to grasp on to something, a name, a face, or a moment in time, he was hit with another blast of searing pain to his head, with obliterated all past recollections. After a couple more futile attempts, he gave up and curled up in the corner in which he'd hidden that first day, allowing the hot tears to run down his face and into the fabric of his torn, dirty jeans. How old had he been here? Days? Weeks? He had no idea. 

\-----

The day that he realised how to escape was a stormy one. He discovered the hard way that the grate hole in the ceiling was actually a very old, leaky window, and woke up with icy water dripping into his hair, which was growing long now and hung in his eyes. He was also in desperate need of a shave. 

Cursing and dragging a hand through his greasy, wet locks, he rolled off the bed and sat on the ground against it, sighing heavily. 

It was then that he saw them: the roses. they had dried up by now, and most of the once-bright red petals had fallen off and curled up on the floor. He picked up what was left of the stiff, greyish stems, and immediately the rest of the blossoms fell away and crinkled against the cement ground. 

Thorne examined the flowers. Along the stems, tiny thorns jutted out, pricking the tips of his fingers. He turned them over, just out of boredom, and gasped as one of the thorns dug into his thumb. He stuck his bloodied thumb into his month and narrowed his eyes at the dangerous plants, thinking. 

Then, out of the bundle, a small piece of paper fell and fluttered to the ground. Jumping in surprise and excitement, Thorne grabbed the slip of paper and unfolded it. On it, in thin, cleanly crafted penmanship that seemed to shine with years of practice, were the words:

_ I picked them myself.  _

_ \- Kai _

Thorne stared at the words, and comprehended the fact that he could  _ read.  _ Out of all the things that had left his fuzzy mass of memory, this one skill was still fully intact. 

Grinning, he slid the note into his pocket and picked up the flowers again, trying carefully to sift through the fog that was clogging his brain. 

He looked up at the grated door to his cell. At the edge of it, where there would presumably be a handle, a tiny hole gaped where a key... or, something similar to a key, would supposedly fit. 

_ A Lock. I picked them myself...  _ The two things were connected somehow, and remembered both.  _ I picked them... the lock... I picked the lock... _

Thorne gasped, his eyes widening. That was it! He could  _ pick _ the lock! "Kai, you're a genius!" He exclaimed to no one in particular, and got to his feet, spinning around, grinning down at the beautiful, magical flowers. 

Laughing out loud, Thorne rushed to the bars and peered outside, making sure the coast was clear. Then he very carefully broke off a piece of the stem on one of the flowers and threaded it into the tiny keyhole. A familiarity that hadn't been there before seemed to flow into his fingers as he worked, as if his body was remembering what his brain had been unable to. He worked slowly, patiently, hoping this would work, hoping the dry plant wouldn't snap or crumble and block the lock further. 

But after a long while, he began to feel gears and other small bits of metal shift, and suddenly with a satisfying  _ click _ , the lock swung open. 

Using all his willpower to prevent himself from triumphantly shouting out at his success, Thorne dropped the rest of the flowered to the cell floor and silently slipped out behind the opened door, glancing around carefully, and tiptoed toward the emergency exit at the end of the hallway. 

After picking the lock on that door as well, he stepped out into the rain, and beamed up at the swirling grey sky. He remembered now just how big and vast the world was, and he couldn't have felt more free.


End file.
